Striping prints for canvas mounting - How difficult?

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Not your average framer
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Striping prints for canvas mounting - How difficult?

Post by Not your average framer »

I have a good quantity of prints of Devon by mostly R.D. Sherrin from earlier last century, which were wrapped and packed in light proof conditions many years ago. They are all in perfect condition and the colours are still very vibrant, so I was thinking of canvas mounting a few to see if they will sell. They are printed of fairly thin paper, but maybe still need stripping to be able to canvas mount them. I have some book binding canvas, plus a few other types of bookbinding cloths, including calico.

Therefore I am thinking about giving it a go! I know the theory, but I have never done it and as a result I am wondering how difficult this is likely to be. Perhaps there might be someone who can tell me? Another possibility might also be to dry mount these prints on to a solid dead flat and smooth backing board, which has a conservation white surface on one side and then apply some texture gell to produce some modern day Oleographs, but I'm wondering if stretched and framed canvas mounted prints might be more profitable.

I have not tried to sell anything like this before, so it's very much uncharted territory for me. Any thoughts?
Thanks,
Mark.
Mark Lacey

“Life is short. Art long. Opportunity is fleeting. Experience treacherous. Judgement difficult.”
― Geoffrey Chaucer
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Steve N
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Re: Striping prints for canvas mounting - How difficult?

Post by Steve N »

If you are trying to get a canvas look on these prints as some photographers used to do about 20 years ago, well first you bond heatseal film to the print, then you soak the whole lot in water, then peel off the backing paper or rub it off, then drymount onto coarse canvas - simple :giggle: :giggle: :sweating: :sweating:
Personally, if you want that look, drymount and then use some of that gel stuff which you paint on leaving brush marks, much easier to do :rock:
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Not your average framer
Posts: 11014
Joined: Sat 25 Mar, 2006 8:40 pm
Location: Devon, U.K.
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Interests: Lost causes, saving and restoring old things, learning something every day
Location: Glorious Devon

Re: Striping prints for canvas mounting - How difficult?

Post by Not your average framer »

Hi Steve,

I think that it was originally recommended to dry mount the print on to a scrap piece of board and then add the heat seal film to the front of the print and then peal off the image really to press it down into the canvas with fusion 400 dry mounting film between the canvas and the rear face of the print. This is what I was expecting to try and do. I think that there is quite a bit of a knack to make this work each and every time.

I don't honestly have much idea how much local pictures are likely to sell, or what price to charge for them. I am guessing that not as many people are going to be taking their holidays abroad, so maybe we will be getting some reasonable tourist traffic. We used to get plenty of tourists at one time, but the foot and mouth disease and the credit crunch pretty much brought and end to any worthwhile tourist trade since then.

These prints are 7" x 9" and I got in many cases 100's of prints of most views. Unfortunately most of these prints are not immediately local, although they are all views of nice places around Devon. I'm a bit out of practice with picking what is likely to interest the tourists, or what to charge for such items, so I'm doing a bit of head scratching at the moment.

Thanks for the info,
Mark.
Mark Lacey

“Life is short. Art long. Opportunity is fleeting. Experience treacherous. Judgement difficult.”
― Geoffrey Chaucer
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prospero
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Re: Striping prints for canvas mounting - How difficult?

Post by prospero »

The process you are thinking of only works on Photographic prints that have an emulsion layer. You can't really do it on
offset-litho prints. It was a very tricky thing to do. I tried it once without much success and never again. :cry:
But, way back when I used to heatseal large prints onto hardboard using coarse texture canvas film.
They look very good and the film is quite thick. Not sure of the availability today. I have a few that I did 30+ years ago and
they are as still as good as the day they were done. :D
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Not your average framer
Posts: 11014
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Location: Devon, U.K.
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Interests: Lost causes, saving and restoring old things, learning something every day
Location: Glorious Devon

Re: Striping prints for canvas mounting - How difficult?

Post by Not your average framer »

Thanks Peter,

That makes good sense.

Mark.
Mark Lacey

“Life is short. Art long. Opportunity is fleeting. Experience treacherous. Judgement difficult.”
― Geoffrey Chaucer
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